HHNOI
Kallocain
Modularfield
Maybe some electronic music will make me feel better. Here’s a possibility: a new disk, the oddly named Kallocian. The artist goes by “HHNOI,” which I’ll just imagine as a mis-typing of the main city in a southeast Asian country. No vocals here; I like that as no one says anything nice any more anyway. There’s a melody and progression to this music; it doesn’t just sit there and warble at you. The press pack is minimalist at best; it claims the aim here is “a blueprint for a complex and cinematic sounding world.”
That’s not the entire press release, but its at least 20% of it. the music DOES sound like it’s from a movie, like those “Mind’s Eye” films back in the ’90s where they took the coolest animation of the day and set it to arty music. Here’s the update of that arty music. Complex rhythms, odd yet subtle dissonances, and a build and release that makes you go: “Yes, this is a story with a beginning, a middle and an end. You get 5 tracks totaling 20 minute, and songs sport interesting titles like “Curmudgeon” and “They Ate the Clouds.” No real connection in my mind’s eye, but a challenging and urgent collection that overcomes its title to deliver an interesting audio experience.
